This reference use survey conducted by the Reference Committee of the Southern Connecticut Council in 1972 was undertaken to determine the present pattern of reference use and to assist in future planning. Some of the characteristics of the 18 public libraries participating in the survey include a media per capita expenditure of $4.65 in 1971, a 2.4 volume per capita average, an average per capita circulation of 6.1 in 1971, an average main building age of over 50 years and an average of 58 open hours per week. The major findings were that non-resident use of reference services ranged from 1.4 to 49.1%, that students and teachers comprise 50.8% of the reference clientele, that in-person reference use was 76% and telephone inquiries 23% of the total and that Monday afternoon was the busiest time of the week. The majority of inquiries were subject searches and ready reference questions with the most popular areas being history and biography. The card catalog and the non-fiction circulating collection were found to be the most heavily used materials. Based on these findings, the report recommended the establishment of a back-up reference service during the busiest hours and compensation for those libraries serving a large proportion of non-users. (JG)